Just hours after news broke that Showtime’s Shameless would switch categories and compete at this year’s Emmys as a comedy, it is now being reported that HBO’s acclaimed True Detective will forgo entering the less-competitive, less-crowded miniseres races and instead vie as a drama.

As a limited-run series with non-continuous characters, True Detective could have easily followed American Horror Story‘s lead and submitted as a miniseries. Instead, the McConaughey/Harrelson two-hander will go up against the likes of Breaking Bad‘s final run, Mad Men, House of Cards, The Good Wife, Homeland, Masters of Sex, The Americans, HBO’s own Boardwalk Empire, The Newsroom and Game of Thrones, and Downton Abbey.

The miniseries categories — which this year returns to being separate from the TV-movie races — meanwhile will likely feature American Horror Story: Coven and FX’s upcoming Fargo as the most formidable competitors.

This year’s Primetime Emmy Awards will be broadcast Monday, Aug. 25 on NBC.

I’m not even an AHS fan, but each season is truly a different show. It shares writers and many cast members, but they’re not playing the same people. The stories told each season aren’t connected. I don’t think it’s ludicrous.

You obviously have no clue what a mini-series is then. It’s a completely different story and characters. AHS is in the right category. TD is being ludicrous. The show that may win best drama series is not even a drama series.

Seemed pretty damn dramatic to me. The difference between True Detective and American Horror Story is that True Detective actually has a chance of winning (but I would cry foul since it’s Breaking Bad’s last eligible year).

Are McConnaughey and Harrelson coming back next season? I thought they weren’t. If that’s the case then it sounds like TD will have a whole new storyline for its second season like AHS. TD should’ve considered mini-series.

And don’t rule out The Good Wife. This is its strongest season yet, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the series and Josh Charles win Emmys.

I’m a bit on the fence about it. In a way it makes sense but in another way “Breaking Bad” is so favored that it could hurt the show and Matthew’s chances at winning. They should totally get nominated but I can’t picture anything beating “Breaking Bad” or Bryan Cranston.

McConaughey will still get a nomination, but he’s less likely to get a win. Likewise, the show may get a nomination (but between Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Good Wife, Game of Thrones, Masters of Sex or The Americans, that competition is fierce) but is not guaranteed to get a win now like it would have against Coven. I don’t think that Harrelson will even score a nomination among that crowd, but it’s the Emmys and sometimes weird flukes happen just because the actor is a more recognizable name.

Very bold move on HBO and Nic’s part. It would’ve easily swept, or at least split-led the miniseries categories. This happening now closes that small gap for some broadcast dramas to enter back into the drama series fold (Scandal, Good Wife, etc.)

I really like true detective, but I hope just because the star of the show is a movie star and an oscar winner, doesn’t mean they will guaranteed to win the best actor over the more deserving ones. I feel like there are some tendencies like that lately with Kevin spacey and robin wright won at the golden globes

Good for them, but aren’t you forgetting SHERLOCK Season 3? That was awesome and it will be eligible for awards at the same time. They’ll have to go on the Series category, for they have continuous characters. Well, we’ll see…

SHERLOCK 3 is as much a tour-de-force as True Detective. It exploded on the USA TV market where Seasons 1 and 2 didn’t. McConaughey had a streak of awards this past season and could still ride that success wave, but Cumberbactch has been nominated before (BAFTA four times and lost). Maybe this is his year. Plus, he’s coming up with The Imitation Game for the big screen. If there was a movie with “Oscar” written all over it, that’s the one. Check it out on imdb.com. I’m thinking E(mmy)G(olden Globes)O(scar)B(afta). Well, we’ll see.